Managing People Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Managing People - Essay Example In order to understand individual differences in talent management, there are various qualities which are usually measured. They range from abilities, personality characteristics, emotional intelligence, locus of control and other factors. The Big Five Personality Theory It is common for human resource professionals to use the Big Five Personality dimensions of traits which make up an individual’s personality. The five traits are openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism (Wiggins 1996, p. 3). The term ‘openness’ indicates that people who love to learn new things and experiences have high degree of openness. Such people are marked by an appreciation for unusual ideas and art. They tend to be highly imaginative and creative. Those who possess creativity are resistant to change and analytical. Now, a look into the performance of Steve Jobs proves that he was a man who was highly open in nature. He was a man who loved innovation and cre ativity and he wanted his people to be so (Case study). Every time, he and his company managed to come up with radically new things. The second important point is conscientiousness. A person who possesses high conscientiousness is marked by high self-discipline. In the case of conscientiousness, it is evident that such people are capable of controlling, regulating and directing their own impulses. They are capable of developing long-term goals, organising ways to achieve the goals, and working consistently and tirelessly to achieve the goals. Admittedly, such people are capable of showing high degree of responsibility and reliability. One can see that Steve Jobs was a man who possessed great degree of conscientiousness which made him appear as a perfectionist at times. As Wiggins (1996, p. 87) points out, it is likely for conscientious people to be termed as perfectionists. Another point of consideration is their relentlessness. As a result, it is possible for people to term people with high degree of conscientiousness as workaholics. The next important point of consideration is extraversion. It shows how outgoing and social a person is. Such people enjoy being with people and participating in social gatherings. Admittedly, Steve Jobs had high degree of extraversion. He loved to be the spokesperson of the company and he communicated with customers directly (Case study). However, there is the other side of extraversion. The introverts do not love to communicate with the outside world. These people tend to be quiet and keep to themselves. Another important point is agreeableness which means warmth, friendliness, and tactfulness. Such people are marked by helpfulness, friendliness, and generosity. That means, in work, Steve Jobs was less of an agreeable person because he never was ready to compromise on his on perceptions and intuitions in order to accommodate the opinion of others (Case study). He knew he was correct, and this feeling made him less agreeable in front o other people who worked with and under him. The next important point is neuroticism. People with high neuroticism can be divided into various categories based on various sub-traits like anxiety, anger, depression, self-consciousness, and immoderation. Admittedly, Steve Jobs was a man who was famous for his short-temperedness. From the discussion, it becomes evident that Steve Jobs was a man with openness, conscientiousness reaching the extent of workaholic and perfectionist proportions, poor degree of agreeableness, and neuroticism. Also, the two important factors that made him stand out from the rest is the high degree of conscientiousness, openness and neuroticism followed by less agreeableness and high neuroticism. That means, if the company manages to find a person